OOM: Ashlands, 1st week of Midyear, 3E 428

[moonandstar]

Garyn met with a rather interesting reception from the garrison at Fort Buckmoth, having apparently arrived not five minutes after the news that he had caught corprus in an assault on the Sixth House base and assuredly been killed. It took some amount of explaining to sort out how and why the message was only half-true. A crowd had gathered as he told as much of the tale as he could - and his men seemed to regard him now like a ghost or a miracle worker.

But they'd be left to their second-in-command for the time being. Garyn had more important duties, along with the perfectly plausible cover story of an inspection of his new stronghold in Bal Isra. Which, as it happens, he would need to do anyway. The men saw him off, saluting as though he were the Emperor himself. He felt as though perhaps he should feel less at ease with such displays of praise and admiration. But he wasn't.

He made good time to Bal Isra, intending only to stay briefly. The Hetman had a few things he wanted to sort out, however. As he'd been told, House Redoran had already started work on the place before the death of Banden Indarys. It was handsome, if austere, on the crest of a ridge topped by a row of tall basaltic columns that formed the rear wall, with a shorter wall in the Dunmer style being constructed around it. They needed more clay to finish the unfilled portions of the wall, as well as the second crab husk for the smith and trader. They also needed to send for women to convince more workers to stay.

Fortunately, this didn't take any further trips on his part. In his dealings in Ald'ruhn and Ald Velothi, he happened to know where these things could be found. He told Hetman Guls where to send his men to get what was needed. From there, he was on his way to his true destination.

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There was a different look to the Urshilaku as he entered their camp again. He was known to them, a Clanfriend, so the usual ritual hostilities were dispensed with. He did make sure to show the obligatory courtesies before entering the Wise Woman's hut, of course.

Nibani Maesa sat down on the floor of the yurt, leaning forward and deep in thought as she took in all he told her about the Lost Prophecies. But she did not appear surprised. Her voice is deliberate, thoughtful but not lost in thought.

"So these are the Lost Prophecies, hmm? You will tell me these things, over and over, until I have them by heart. And then you will tell me what these priests say, what they see in these words. And then, you must leave me. Hunt. Sleep. Train. Feed. Learn the land. I must bring these things into me, and place them before my ancestors, and listen to them, and to the skies and stars of my dreams. And then, when the moons have come and gone, return, and I will give you my judgement.”

Garyn knew better than to question a wise woman. And even if he didn't, he could surely stand to wait a day among these people. And so he went, joining the day's kagouti hunt. A productive one it was - he had even earned himself a nod of acknowledgement for landing the killing blow on a bull.

At dawn he returned, and Nibani Maesa remained, seeming not to have even moved since Garyn left.

“The ancestors and stars have given me clear signs. The lost prophecies leave no doubt — the Incarnate shall be an outlander. You, blessed by Azura, must lift the seven curses of Dagoth Ur. Prophecy has shown the seven steps of the Nerevarine’s path, and I have been chosen as your guide for each step on that path. I will read the signs, and show you the way. It is time for you to walk the path of the Seven Visions, and pass the Seven Trials of the Seven Visions.

“You are born on a certain day to uncertain parents. So you have passed the first trial. My dreams show me that you also fulfill the second trial, that ‘neither blight nor age can harm him/The Curse-of-Flesh before him flies’. I have read the signs, but I cannot understand. Can you explain this to me?”

At this, Garyn told the whole story of how he had caught corprus disease in Ilunibi, and survived the wizard's cure that had killed all others who received it.

“That you have overcome the Curse-of-Flesh is strange enough, but that it should protect you from blight and age is past belief. Yet the signs of my dreams are clear. You have passed the second trial. But the third trial is unfulfilled. The mystery of the third trial is not my secret to share. Go to Sul-Matuul, the guardian of our cult, and he shall tell you of the third trial. When you have fulfilled the third trial, return to me for guidance on your next steps on the path of the Nerevarine.”

Garyn bowed his head. "I shall not fail to heed your wisdom, muthsera."

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At this point the whole camp was abuzz and murmuring. Every eye of the Urshilaku was on Garyn as he left the wise woman's yurt. The Ashkhan was standing in front of his yurt, waiting for him. Then he turned and slipped back inside, the invitation already clearly offered without words. Garyn followed.

Sul-Matuul's face was stern as always.

“You wish to know about the Third Trial, and I shall tell you.”

Garyn merely nodded.

“You have entered the path of the Nerevarine. This is a hard thing to believe. But Nibani Maesa has spoken to me at length of this, and I have had time to consider. Therefore I shall keep my own counsel, and set before you my own test. I do not dispute with the wise women, but their ways are not the ways of the warrior. Many before have tried the path of the Nerevarine, but all have failed the warrior’s test. All too many times, a hope has risen and died before it. I myself have seen this. You must have strength, courage, and cunning. These things I would test."

A younger Garyn - not even MUCH younger - would have been frustrated at these words. Now, however, his face showed only determination and confidence.

“Nearby lies Kogoruhn, the ancient halls of the forgotten house, House Dagoth. In recent time, creatures of the blight have come to dwell there. I myself went there, with some brave hunters, and came back again, but it was a bad place, and I am not ashamed to say I was afraid, for myself and my men. If you would have from me the secret of the Third Trial, the ‘caverns dark’ where Azura’s eye sees, you will first bring to me three tokens from dark Kogoruhn.

“The first token is corprus weepings from a corprus beast, to show that you are proof against the disease’s corruption. The second token is a cup with the mark of House Dagoth, for I have myself seen such cups there, and will know you have seen with your eyes what I have seen with mine. The third token is the Shadow Shield, which lies on the Tomb of Dagoth Morin, in the lava tunnels deep beneath ruined Kogoruhn. Bring these things to me, and then I will tell you the secret of the Third Test.”

Garyn stood with his hand by his scabbard. "You need but tell me the way."

Comments

[moonandstar]

"It seems the best approach," Garyn says, nodding.

They come out into the landing again and head for the keep.

"This may be a long search. A part of me wonders if it will be in the top of the keep or far beneath it. It seems more House Dagoth's style to dig deeper."

[last_kallig]

"Down does feel right," she agrees. "I'll put the cloak on us once we're through the first door."

The keep is still creepy on the inside, to no one's surprise. She puts a Force Cloak over the two of them with the ease of someone who has done this thousands of times.

[moonandstar]

The atmosphere is familiar indeed. So too, unfortunately, is the company. The shambling corprus beasts, the Dreamers worshipping the smell of death, and the other horrors that lurk the halls.

The first staircase downward, fortunately, is easy enough to find. Garyn creeps as quietly as he can down each step - stealth was never his strongest suit.

[last_kallig]

It's not HIS strong suit, but it IS Ibani's. And she's quite capable of muffling sound as well as obscuring them from sight.

They'll make it down the stairs, if slowly. The REAL question is what the hell is at the bottom?

[moonandstar]

What awaits them is a stone catwalk above a tall, vaulted room. In the center of that catwalk is an Ascended Sleeper, decked in robes best described as "resplendently sickening." It stands with its back turned, yet it still speaks.

"Look! It's Azura's Fool! Look at you. Not a real thing at all. Just a pathetic puppet of prophecy. And you think you can trust the Daedra Lords?"

Its tone is different from the rest - more cruel and mocking than the usual deluded nobility. One might almost think it had a mind of its own.

Instead of answering, Garyn snarls and bounds forward. It's almost unfathomable how much distance he can cover now, with his unnatural strength. Sholagmer is in the thing's spine in an instant, so far as the thing even has one.

A foul green miasma billows around them as Garyn continues to dig the blade into the monstrous priest. An unearthly squeal fills the room.

[last_kallig]

Force Lightning might be a bit monotonous, but it has an excellent track record! That's why Ibani throws some at the thing while trying to push the miasma away from her.

She's impressed at the distance Garyn can cover now, even if she loathes how he GOT that ability deeply.

[moonandstar]

The lesser Dagoth twitches and hurdles, quickly dissolving into a lump just as its kinsman had. But it offers these parting words first:

"How soon you forget their treachery..."

Garyn gives these words no thought. He wipes his black blade and continues forward to the stairs at the side of the catwalk.

"We'll want to go right, I think."

[last_kallig]

"He could at least have said something useful," she mutters. "Treachery befalls anyone with power sooner or later."

"Right feels as good a choice as any." She cloaks them both again, just in case.

[moonandstar]

The passages continue to wind through the flickering red candlelight. They come to another door which leads to an underworks. It's not unlike the sewers of one of Vivec's cantons.

"I certainly wasn't hoping to have to wade through the sewers of this place."

[brave_kreyu]

"Neither was I," she agrees. "And who is keeping all of the candles lit, anyway? Maybe the Mer we killed when we first arrived?"

"Force Cloak won't work well if we're wading through that much water," she informs Garyn. "Unless you want to move at a snail's pace."

[moonandstar]

"We'll keep to the side wherever we can, then," Garyn says. "And hope that it's dried off a little in four thousand years."

Whereupon Garyn leads them across the narrow walkways that skirt the sides of these underworks.

[last_kallig]

Ibani nods in agreement. Even the narrow walkways are foul, but it's better than wading through the water.

As they travel, she's not quite sure of all of the turns they've made. The Force is clouded here with echoes of Dagoth Ur and it's messing with her sense of direction.

[moonandstar]

It's a tight fit, especially as they both tread lightly and stealthily. There's just enough room to slip past a Frost Atronach lurking around one of the walls. Soon, however, they find themselves at what seems to be a dead end, with the only point of egress being a tunnel leading to a stagnant sump.

"I had been hoping not to have to go swimming. But I don't see another way through."

[last_kallig]

"Let me stretch my senses a bit, see if we've missed anything."

She opens her senses as much as she dares and braces herself for potential assault by the foul energies that linger here.

[moonandstar]

If there's another way through, Garyn would be eager to hear about it. Alas, there isn't one.

[last_kallig]

Ibani sighs as she opens her eyes. "Not finding any other routes," she admits. "We COULD check everywhere else first, maybe save ourselves a swim."

[moonandstar]

Garyn shakes his head and grunts.

"Don't think we'll find it. It looks like the only way out is through."

He takes a deep breath facing away from the stagnant water.

"Let's hope it's short enough to hold our breaths."

[last_kallig]

"That, I can help with." She fishes in the pockets of her armor and pulls out two rebreathers.

"Never know when you're going to suddenly need your own supply of breathable air for a few hours."

[moonandstar]

"The idea that we might need these for hours is a terrifying thought."

He secures his rebreather and, after mustering the courage, dives into the stagnant water.

[last_kallig]

Ibani secures hers and dives after him.

UGH, this water is foul and she's perceiving her environment more with the Force than any of the standard physical senses.

Still, it could be worse. It could, for instance, be pure blood with the addition of monsters in it. (Yes, the Sith Academy on Korriban has one of those in the basement, for ritual purposes.)

[moonandstar]

And, if nothing else, they only need to go around one bend before the water is low enough to surface.

Garyn shakes himself vigorously like a dog as he emerges.

[last_kallig]

Ibani reaches out with the Force to 'squeeze' most of the water and particulates she's picked up in the water off of her person once they are back on 'dry' ground.

"I think I can get most of the mess off of you, if you want?" she offers.

[moonandstar]

"Ugh, please do."

[last_kallig]

Ibani employs her little trick with the Force on Garyn's behalf. It probably feels a bit weird being squeegeed by an invisible force, but it works!

"Another useful little trick I'm not sure any of my so called peers know how to do."

[moonandstar]

"You never run out of surprises, love," Garyn says, smiling.

One shared moment of brightness in this awful place.

In the meantime, they can return to their usual trick of remaining cloaked. Another winding sewer passage like the one they had just swam away from stands before them. Yet at the end of this one, the wall has been smashed in and tunneled through, leading to a dark rock-hewn passage.